Base-ball mitt.



no. 677,958. Ptented my 9, |991.

c. H. DEAN.

'BASE BAL). um. (Appliction led Oct 20, 1909.)

(No lodel.)

THE Nqnms PErsns cu.. PHOTOLITHD.. WASHINGTON, u. c.

CHARLES H. DEAN, OF BROOKTN, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR-TOTHE STALL AND DEAN MANUFACTURINGCOMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

BAS E-BALL M ITT.

SPECIEICATON forming part of Letters Patent No. 677,958, dated July 9, 1901.

f Application filed October 20,1900. Serial No. 33,734. (No model.)

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES H. DEAN, of Brockton, in the county of Plymouth and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful .Improvements in Base-Ball Mitts, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to base-ball mitts. An object much sought after in the manufacture of these goods is the formation of a pocket or depression in the mitt between the catchers thumb and foreiinger to assist him in retaining the ball after it is caught. The majority of these mitts have separate palm and thumb portions, which in many instances are drawn together at their ends and in some cases have the walls of the cleft between said portions connected across, either with a permanent or adjustable connection, such as lacing. Attempts have been made to secure the pocket effect in a solid mitt or one not having distinct palm and thumb portions, since this form is in general cheaper to lnanufacture and simpler in construction than the other form; but these attempts have not, so far as I am aware, met with success. The pocket effectcannotbeproperlyattained. The mitts having the separate palm and thumb portions give the best pocket effect; but they have met with objection in that heretofore the thumb portion has had too great a'freedom of Inovement with respect to the palm portion. The object of the present invention is to decrease this freedom of movement, While at the sametime retaining the distinct construction Vof palm and thumb portions in order to obtain the desired pocket effect, the object being at the same time to simplify, cheapen, and strengthen the construction of the mitt.

Theinvention c onsists in the novel features of construction and arrangement which I shall now proceed to describe and claim.

Of the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 represents a front elevation of a mitt constructed in accordance with my present invention. Fig. 2 represents a section in the plane of the mitt. Fig. 3 represents a section online 3 3 of Fig. 1. Fig. et represents a section on line t 4C of 5o Fig. 1.

The same reference characters indicate the same parts in all of the figures.

1 represents a mitt having palm and thumb portions 2 and 3 separated by acleft 4t.

The body of the mitt is made up in the usual fashion so far as the provision of the front and back Walls 5 6 and an edge Wall inclosing an interior space filled with stuffing or padding material 7 is concerned.

` The Walls of the mitt maybe made of leather or other suitable material. A portion of the edge Wall is made by doubling or folding a strip 8 of leather or other suitable material, which constitutes the Walls of the cleft 4, this strip extending to the outward end of the cleft and preferably being continuous for some distance in both directions along the outer edge of the mitt to give ample strength, although I do not consider it essential to my invention to extend this strip farther than the outer end of the cleft. The Walls of the cleft are permanently united from one end to the other at both the front and back sides of the mitt by a rectangular line of stitching`9.

(Seen in Figs. 3 and 4..) They are further united at the outer end of the cleft by means of two rivets 10 10, which give added strength at the point Where the greatest strain comes.

The strip 8 constitutes part of the edge closure ofthe interior spaceof the mitt. The remaining part ofthe edge closure is constituted by an outer edge strip 11, extending completely around the mitt and permanently united throughout its length by lines of stitchling 12 13 with the front and back walls 5 6.

The edge strip 1l is thus made an integral part of the edgewall structure of the mitt, and it willA beseen that it serves to firmly and permanently `unite the palm and thumb portions 2 3 across their ends.

14 is a'l marginal strip or piece extending around the m-itt on the inner side ofthe edge Wall and united to said wall by a middle line of stitching 15. The preferred sequence of steps in the manufacture of the mitt is as follows, although variations are permissible: The front and rear Walls 5 6 are first united to the strip 8 as far as the outer end. of the cleft by means of lines of stitching 16 17, the union at the front side being, as shown, a lapseam and that at the back side being a buttsearn and the line of stitching on the front side being preferably extended to or near the ends of the strip 8. rThe line of stitching 9, which unites the Walls of the cleft, is then applied and the rivets l0 are placed. Next the outer edge strip ll is stitched to the front cover 5 and the ends of the strip 8, the mitt is stuffed, and the edge strip ll is stitched to the back cover G and ends of the strip 8 with a butt-seam. y

The above-described construction provides a mitt which is simple and can be more cheaply made than palm-and-thumb mitts heretofore known and presents a neater exterior appearance. The pocket effect is also attained in the highest desirable degree and the objectionable independentmoveinent ofthe thumb portion is prevented by the permanent and close union of said thumb portion With the palm portion throughout the length of the cleft between them and across the ends of the said portions. When the palm and thumbv portions are drawn into close contact and secured directly together from end to end of the cleft, the pocket or depression hereinbefere referred to is formed, and said'pocket or dej pression is therefore not dependent upon the r manner of placing or packing the materialI with Which the mitt is stiifened.

Having thus explained the nature of my? invention and described a ivay of constructing and using the same, though Without attempting to set forth all the forms in which it may be made or all the modes of its use, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. A base-ball mitt having distinct palm and thumb portions separated by a cleft the walls whereof are permanently united to each other in direct and close Contact from one end to the other of the cleft.

2. A base-ball mitt having distinct palm` and thumb portions separated by a cleft the Walls whereof are made by a strip doubled and forming part of the edge closure of the interior space of the mitt, and an edge strip entirely surrounding the mitt and extending across and connecting the palm and thumb portions across their ends, said edge strip being permanently sewed in place and forming the remainder of the edge closure of the interior space.

3. A base-ball mitt having distinct palm and thumb portions separated by a cleft the Walls whereof are permanently united to each other in close Contact from one end to the other of the cleft, and a connecting-piece nniting said portions across their ends.`

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES II. DEAN.

Witnesses:

F. M. BIXBY, D. P. RICE. 

